Bhubaneswar: The Principal Secretary of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment department Dr Arabinda Kumar Padhee has restricted the frequent visits of district level officers and field officers to the State headquarters with their transfer-related complaints.
Padhee said that no officer is allowed to visit the State headquarters without prior permission of the higher authorities.
Earlier, the secretary had issued a directive in this context, asking district and field officers to visit the headquarters with the letter of permission from the higher authorities for any complaint or grievances.
Any complaint, if sent through departmental e-mail or appropriate channel, may be resolved on the basis of individual merits and government norms.
The department also organises a grievance cell every Monday. Officials and farmers visit to the cell to solve their issues expeditiously.
Dr Padhee said, “We are trying to resolve any grievance quickly in an efficient manner. However, some officers are making frequent visits to the State headquarters regarding transfer cases in gross violation of earlier orders. Therefore, no district officials will be allowed to come to Bhubaneswar without the permission of the authorities.”
As the kharif season approaches, the presence of field officers at their respective stations is more important to meet the needs of farmers. This must be taken into consideration by the officers, he added.
Dr Padhee suggested the officers to refrain from putting any pressure on the matter of transfer. By doing so, they will not be able to escape the government service conduct rules, he said.